Some people say I have ADD and I would argue with them but, by the time I think of a decent defense, I have forgotten what we were talking about.  I asked my doctor about it and he said he was hesitant to prescribe medication because he felt like I had learned to deal with it.  Then I told him about all the people in my life that it takes to help me deal, and he still refused.  Anyway, I am convinced that my alleged condition is irritated by the daily task of managing my inbox.  The constant barrage of messages, some new and some continuing to stare back at me waiting for me to take action or put them out of their misery.  It’s just cruel.  Well I think I might have made a breakthrough and I am happy to share it with anyone who also suffers from inbox overload.

I aspire like the rest of us to have an empty inbox which, to me, is achieving perfect harmony in life. Also, it seems like the re-reading and re-opening of emails over and over again only to remember why they are still there wastes a lot of time.  So I created “The  Focus Box”.  When an email comes in I either reply to it immediately if I can, delete it if it needs no further action, or move it to a folder called “The Focus Box”.  So for the last month, my inbox has been empty and I spend all my time managing “The Focus Box” and to my surprise, it is actually working.  There are only 10 or so messages per day that need real attention and if I can’t knock them out that day, I can attend to them the next morning.

As is the case with most people who suffer from ADD, these strategies rarely last but I am hopeful that I can keep the dream alive and be one of the few people at peace with their inbox.